A collection of musically themed musings by Brendan Bush in Burlington, VT

Obviously this is a little late as we’re now well into 2012. Just ignore that, and check out the wonderful music below.

2011 was a strange year for me in terms of music consumption. Due to work overload and a rapidly evolving landscape of music sources, I didn’t buy nearly as much music as I did the previous year (nor did I see nearly as many shows, nor really did I keep up with this blog as much as I’d like to). That being said, while I was slacking on the listening, there were many bands out there really getting at it. This is a compilation of my favorite tunes among the really fantastic releases of 2011.

If you “like” this site on Facebook, and want a copy of this year’s CD, just send me an email using the link in the upper right of this site, and include your mailing address. If you dig any of the music featured, please support the artists making it by going to their shows, buying their albums, and letting your friends know they should give a listen as well.

I’m generally not one for singles – in fact I usually find myself pretty irritated every time a band pushes some “exclusive” single on me through Facebook/Twitter. I like listening to music like musicians like making it – by the album. I know that artists and labels, in an effort to make any money at all, are probably responding to the way the general populace is now consuming music, but I kinda wish artists would fight against it a little bit more by laying off the release of digital singles a bit.

Anyhow, that being said, I just stumbled across a wonderful song by one of my favorite songwriters, David Vandervelde (who is going by just his last name for this release?). I think I was tricked into clicking, because nothing mentioned a “single” or a “track”, but once I was on the page, I decided to give a listen, and I loved the song so much I had to share it here, against my own advice.

While eating lunch and trying to get all my daily distractions out of the way, I stumbled across the recently released video for “Wake and Be Fine,” a single off of the upcoming release I Am Very Far (Due out May 10). When it was done, I immediately pre-ordered the album. The lyrics are, as usual, incredibly literate and poetic, and the music behind them is a lot richer and quite a bit more “rock-y” than anything else I’ve heard from Okkervil River. I’m really, really excited about hearing the rest of the album.

There’s a very good chance you’ve seen this video (or the newer official video), as it’s been out for about a month. But I can’t get the song out of my head, so I wanted you to suffer the same fate. So go ahead, hit play on the video below.

The song, aptly named “Fuck You,” is as straightforward as it sounds. It’s a message to the women who have wronged Cee-Lo set over a Motown beat, and is as catchy as “Crazy,” from the Cee-Lo/Danger Mouse collaboration Gnarls Barkley. I still throw on their 2006 release St. Elsewhere every now and again, and am looking forward to what else Cee-Lo has to offer on his upcoming album Lady Killer.

p.s. apologies to my mom (a regular reader) for the language. you probably want to skip this one.

I spent the last 10 days in Rome and Tel Aviv, and while I’m glad to be back, I’m also exhausted. I’ll get back to real writing soon, and have a new friend who I hope you’ll see writing on this blog in the near future. But in the meantime, here’s Rococo from Arcade Fire (from their recent release The Suburbs), the song I listened to most while away.

p.s. Thanks to Aaron for filling in for me and sharing some quality posts.

Ed. Note: I’ll be filling in for Brendan for a few days. Our musical taste arc has followed the same hip-hop to indie music (with some hip-hop interspersed) progression, so I hope to do this blog’s theme justice.

“Right On” by The Roots is the 9th track off of their latest release, “How I Got Over.” While I highly recommend the entire album, I want to focus on this particular track.

A rework of “The Book of Right-On” by Joanna Newsom, this track immediately hit me with its haunting and mesmerizing hooks and break beats. Newsom’s harp and voice combined with Questlove’s drums create a backdrop for this song that leaves the listener yearning for more. An aside: you can read more about Joanna Newsom’s unique journey through indie music at NYTimes.com.

Black Thought deftly maneuvers through his verse. Like the rest of the album, his level-headed but strong flow drives the track with a sense of purpose. On this occasion though, the lyrical gem of the track belongs to the other guest. STS aka Sugar Tongue Slim, the Philly by way of Atlanta rapper, comes out of nowhere to steal the track with his verse. He quickly burns through his 45 seconds, dropping several scientific references and finishing with a sports analogy. That combination is a key to my rap-loving heart. It’s the type of performance that makes you do a double-take and rewind to the beginning of it.

Sure, the track’s message is a bit shallow; it’s equal parts ego boasting and city repping. But it certainly left an impression on me for days. Give it a listen and let me know what you think: